Living Like David....a Heart After God

In our Bible study last night, we were talking about David and the strong faith and confidence that he had in God.  The Bible says he had a heart after God's own heart. He believed God had his back no matter what came against him. Even when fighting a battle against his enemy, Goliath, he chose not to wear the normal coat of armor and proclaimed to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.  All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands." (I Samuel 17:45,47)    
 I Samuel 18:14 says, "In everything he did he had great success, because the Lord was with him."

Many times in our own lives we are facing similar battles. We might not be fighting a giant backed by soldiers, but we are facing battles against sin, temptations, sickness, loss, finances, relationships, life struggles, and everyday decisions.  So you might be asking, "How can I have great success in life?  What does it mean to have a heart after God's own heart?  How do I live with faith and confidence?"  Like David, we all must make a choice....a choice to follow God.  Seeking God on a daily basis stirs our hearts to desire more of God, to live more like God, to become more like God....thus increasing our faith and confidence to face whatever comes our way. John Bevere says, "We will only hunger for what we feed on."  This applies both physically and spiritually.  If we are not surrounding ourselves with things of God and feeding on the things of God, how can we expect to live with his power in our lives?  By feeding on the things of God, we daily increase our power to live victoriously!  Our hearts become so tuned into God's truth and the promises that He has for us, that nothing can defeat us.  Will we still have hearts that are heavy & saddened?  Yes, because we are still human...but God's spirit strengthens us, and His truth over our lives becomes our solid foundation. Faith, confidence, strength, and joy overpower the doubts, fears and insecurities that we struggle with.  God has already won these battles for us!

I am a huge advocate for Whole Living and becoming healthy in all areas of our life.  I strongly believe they are all tied together. If we are not putting healthy foods into our bodies, then we are unable to live at our fullest potential, thus hindering our attention and desire to seek after God.

Here are 3 tips to becoming healthy and living with a heart after God:

1. Get healthy physically- eat whole plant foods (especially lots of veggies), reduce meat & dairy, ditch the sugars, say no to packaged/processed foods, exercise
2. Get healthy spiritually- read & study God's Bible (He's speaking to you!), talk to God everyday (nothing fancy...just tell Him what's on your heart), choose to see God in all things
3. Get healthy mentally/emotionally- getting healthy physically & spiritually will help this area, surround yourself with positive relationships, speak God's Word in your life, turn on some great worship music (Kari Jobe, Hillsong United, Chris Tomlin, etc.)

I say a prayer today for all of you that are facing battles in life right now. Let's join together and allow our hearts to strive after God's heart. Let's grow our faith and defeat our battles......one day at a time. :)

Homemade Granola

This recipe is great for your morning cereal or just as a snack in the afternoon. This recipe is gluten free and so much healthier than the gluten free cereals in the store.

Homemade Granola


5 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup raw unsalted sliced almonds (or whole almonds)
1/4 cup raw unsalted pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup ground flax seeds
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup local raw honey
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4-1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 325. Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Melt coconut oil in a small sauce pan on the stove on low heat. Add the honey, vanilla and salt to the coconut oil. Pour liquid mixture over dry ingredients and mix together.  Bake for 20-30 minutes in a large casserole dish, stirring every 10 minutes.  Let cool.

Top with fresh banana or fresh blueberries and some almond milk.
Enjoy! :)

Dairy Free Pesto

                                
I LOVE fresh basil!  I also love making fresh pesto.  I don't eat dairy, so I made this recipe with nutritional yeast, which gives it that salty, cheesy taste that you would normally get from the parmesan.  Nutritional yeast is a great super food loaded with fiber, protein, folate and B vitamins. This pesto is great mixed in with your favorite pasta and lots of veggies!

Dairy Free Pesto

2 cups tightly packed basil leaves
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup pine nuts (or pecans if you do not have pine nuts)
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp-1tsp sea salt

Banana "Ice Cream"

Made this for dessert tonight....very yummy! :)  This banana "ice cream" recipe has no added sugars, no gluten, no dairy and is extremely low in fat (bananas have less than 1 gram of fat). I added my Amazing Grass Green Superfood to it to boost the health benefits too. Makes 2 servings.

3 frozen bananas (sliced)
2 tsp. vanilla extract or hazelnut extract
2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 scoop of Amazing Grass Green Superfood

Blend together in your food processor, occasionally scraping the sides down, until combined and creamy. Enjoy!



If you just want plain banana, you can just blend the 3 frozen bananas (sliced) with 2 tsp. vanilla extract.
Top with nuts, shredded coconut or shaved chocolate.

Earth Day

                        

Earth Day is April 22 and was started to create awareness and appreciation of the planet and environment we live in.  This event is not only for the one day....it is a celebration for every day.  We, as Christians, should be the biggest advocates of Earth Day.  "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." (Genesis 1:1) We believe in God as the creator of the earth and of all things...we love God and want to serve Him in obedience...therefore, shouldn't we desire to worship God by being mindful of our choices and actions to be better stewards of His beautiful creation that He has graciously entrusted us to live in?  We are called to be good stewards of all that God has blessed us with...our bodies, our money, our time, our homes, our families, our jobs, and His creation that He gave us to live in (the earth, the environment, the animals and the people).  I encourage us all to be mindful this year and think of at least 1 way that we can make a change to show more respect to God and His land.  Being "green" not only cares for the earth and environment, but it also cares for our health and the health of our families.  You might be thinking, "Our earth is so polluted already.  There's nothing I can do to help or change things."  Be encouraged that one person and small changes can make a BIG difference.  If God has asked us to take care of all that He has entrusted us with, let's choose to act with respect to Him!


Here are some tips on living "green": 

1. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
2. Reusable Shopping Bags- give up paper and plastic bags and take your own reusable bag when you go shopping. Once you empty your groceries from them at home, put them by the door so you remember to keep them in the trunk of your car.
3. Stop Buying Bottled Water- use a reusable water bottle. I recommend Klean Kanteen www.kleankanteen.com. My husband & I carry ours around everywhere. I love them! They are clean and safe and come in different colors and sizes. They also have bottles for infants and sippy cups for toddlers. I do not recommend consuming too much from plastic, but if you get a plastic reusable bottle I recommend getting one with the number 1, 2, 4 or 5 on the bottom. Numbers 3, 6 and 7 can pose more health threats.
4. Take Shorter Showers & Conserve Water Use in the Kitchen
5. Use More Natural, Biodegradable Cleaning Products- make your own at home or support companies that are making a difference environmentally. (Seventh Generation, Method, Sun and Earth, Mrs. Meyer's)
6. Reusable Wrags- give up paper towels and replace with reusable wrags that you can throw in the wash.
7. Use More Natural Products for Body- this is healthier for the earth and your skin. Natural products don't have the pesticides and toxic chemicals in them and use "greener" packaging. (Desert Essence, Kiss My Face, JASON, Arbonne, Avalon Organics, Juice Beauty, 100% Pure, Yes to Carrots, and so many more!)
8. Reusable Containers- use reusable containers for lunches and to store food in the fridge.
9. Energy- unplug chargers when not in use, turn lights off when not in the room and use energy saving bulbs, turn down the thermostat
10. Food- plant a garden, support your local farmer's market, buy organic, reduce meat & dairy consumption (not only is it great for your health and environment, but it helps in eliminating the horrific abuse that animals go through BEFORE they actually get to the slaughter house. This is never how God intended us to treat His animals! I encourage you to read Farm Sanctuary, by Gene Baur. Environmentally, it takes 1,800-2,500 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef.)

I highly recommend Sara Snow's, Fresh Living book. It has great tips and resources for living "green".
There are so many more ways to living "green" and respecting the earth that God has entrusted us with...I would love to hear some of your tips! :)

Letting Go of Our Stones

As we celebrate Easter this season, let us not forget that it is not about the bunnies, eggs and chocolates. Let's remember the ultimate gift of love & sacrifice that our Savior, Jesus Christ, paid for us on the cross for our sins.  Not only do we reflect on His death for our freedom, but we REJOICE because our Redeemer LIVES!  I think many times we (including myself) celebrate the "season" of Easter as a holiday, but we forget to rejoice and celebrate that our lives are daily gifts of Easter. What struggle are you facing today?...what sickness are you dealing with?...what sorrow do you weep over today?...what doubts & fears are hindering you?  These things in our lives have become "stones" that we hold onto and fail to let go of. The same power of God that made the stone roll away at the tomb where Jesus lay (Mark 16) is the same power that can move the "stones" in our daily lives! Remember, Jesus not only died for our sins....He also died for our pain, sickness, sorrows, and struggles. Does this mean that all the hurt and pain of life circumstances goes away?  Not at all. We won't be completely whole until we are living in Heaven with Him, but as we truly grasp His love & power over our lives and grow into a deeper relationship with God, we come to learn new perspectives, see healings, realize the strength that we have to live with confidence and joy, and realize that our life is so much more than the here and now. "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." -Romans 8:37

Jesus has already gone before us and has won these battles that we are facing! Isn't that exciting & awesome!!!  All we need to do is trust in Him, let go of our "stones" and then His grace becomes the "wheatgrass" (fuel & energy) for our life. Isaiah 43:19 says, "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."  As we celebrate the beauty of this spring season, let's learn, listen and rejoice that God is doing new things in our lives every day! He is moving "stones" all around us! 

If you are struggling with "stones" in your life and don't understand how to let go of them or you're just going through a very difficult time right now, don't hesitate to contact me. I would love to chat with you, pray with you and walk this journey with you. :) 

Beauty From a Manger

This year, the Christmas story (Luke 2) speaks to me in a new way.  Don't get me wrong, I always value and cherish the truth of my Savior being born. Without Him, I would not have life...I would not have hope.  This year, I am not only looking at the truth of Jesus, our Messiah, being born, but I am also looking at the feelings and emotions of Joseph, Mary and Jesus as God was in Heaven trying to carry out His greatest gift of love to all people.
     Looking at Mary, we think how special she was to be chosen by God to give birth to the Savior of the world!  She was highly favored by God because of her sincere heart and obedience to Him.  But being favored by God doesn't mean life was perfect or easy for Mary.  She still struggled with fear, sadness and discouragement.  She was pregnant and not married yet, and during that time you were shunned and disrespected for having sex before marriage. She had to feel so lonely and like an outcast among her family and society. She was engaged to be married to Joseph. Instead of enjoying the excitement of being engaged and planning a wedding, she would be carrying a child for 9 months and becoming a mother.  At the time of giving birth, she was probably thinking, "You've asked me to give birth to a King and here I am in the dirt and where horses and cows eat and poop??...this is so unsanitary for a new baby!"  Once being a mother, she had to feel a huge responsibility! She was not only being a mom for the first time, but she was raising a King and Savior of the World.  "What if I lead him the wrong direction or don't teach him enough or can't get him to eat his veggies?," she must have been thinking. But with all of the fear, loneliness, worry and discouragement, Mary still obeyed God. Her words say it best in Luke 1:38, "I am the Lord's servant.  May it be to me as you have said."
     Joseph was a follower of God and a man of integrity.  He must have felt humiliated finding out that his fiance' was pregnant and the child wasn't his.  Even after being obedient to God's request to still take Mary as his wife he had to be thinking, "This is so crazy! I saw this going differently in my head."  He would have had humiliation from society as well, with them all thinking HE got her pregnant.  The responsibility of protecting Mary during her pregnancy with the future King had to weigh heavy upon him.  During King Herod's massacre of baby boys, Joseph had to be feeling fear and anxiety. He was obedient to what God told him to do, but he was probably so worried he would make one wrong move and destroy the future of the world.  As Jesus grew up, Joseph had so much responsibility upon him to raise the Messiah and teach him the ways of God.  It wasn't at all what he pictured his life to be, but he obeyed God.
     You would think if God was going to have His Son, the Savior of the world, born on earth, He would go BIG! Maybe born of royalty or in the best hospital in the world (with His own private floor of course) or not even having to be born...just God speaking and Him appearing. But that's not how God works.  He had a higher purpose for Jesus' life, from pre-birth to death and resurrection.  His life is an example for us to follow, one of humility, servanthood, love, obedience, prayer and faith in the unseen.  As Jesus grew up, He had to at times felt like he was not being treated fairly for the title that He carried.  This is not how a king should be raised.  Just before his death on the cross, he even prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me."  He definitely experienced loneliness, rejection, physical pain and sadness. But He went on to say in Matthew 26:39, "Yet not as I will, but as you will."  Jesus didn't enjoy having to be in pain, face so many demands and struggle so much with flesh and spirit, but He obeyed God.  He knew that God had a higher purpose and plan.
     This Christmas, as you celebrate the birth of our Savior, yet still struggle with loneliness, fear and anxiety, job loss and financial struggles, purpose, sickness and pain, infertility and loss of a child, loss of a loved one, stress, rejection and everyday decisions, and wonder how you will make it through....just remember there is beauty around the corner! Because of Mary's, Joseph's and Jesus' obedience to God, beauty came from the manger!  If they would have hesitated, or decided to do things their own way, the future of the world could have been different. So whether small or large, I know everyone faces some kind of struggle and I say a prayer for you! Stay strong in prayer, keep your faith in God and choose to be obedient.  We may be the vessel for God's beauty to shine just as beauty came from a manger.

Merry Christmas!